


It's time you pick your battle and I promise you this is mine

by CaptainSif



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Continuation, Canonical Character Death, Family Feels, Friendship, Gen, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Hogwarts Seventh Year, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Minor Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Not a Love Story, Not a ship fic, Panic Attacks, Percy Weasley is a good brother, Potions, Quidditch, Redemption, Thestrals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2020-10-28 01:35:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 21,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20770352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainSif/pseuds/CaptainSif
Summary: Harry spends the summer after the battle of Hogwarts at the burrow where the Weasley's, along with the rest of the wizarding world, try to rebuild their society and families while grieving for the ones they've lost.And after the summer, Harry and his friends go back to Hogwarts to finish their education.While Ron and Hermione seem to have found a life they want to build and work towards their dream jobs and their joint future, Harry finds himself rethinking his own plans and starting a surprising friendships with a certain Slytherin that has as much of a guilt complex as himself.





	1. Another summer

**Author's Note:**

> I just finished the Harry Potter series for the first time (I know, I am so so late to the party) and found myself very much invested in the story lines of the Malfoys (Draco and Narcissa, I could not care less about Lucius) and decided to write my headcanon on a possible friendship between Harry and Draco out and on that part I try to work with canon.
> 
> It is very important to me that you know that this is NOT A SHIP FIC and besides some canon couples I take over, I will not develop any new romances (I hope that this makes it safe for romance repulsed people to read but I would have written it this way anyway).  
I will let it open enough tho that both Hinny and Drarry are possible in this ficverse even tho I will purely focus on the platonic parts of both of those relationships.
> 
> I hope you have fun reading this fic <3
> 
> Story title is from "The Isle fo Flightless Birds" from Twenty One Pilots and I can assure you it does have a story significance.
> 
> It is unbeta'd, so I am really sorry for all the mistakes that are 1. all my own and 2. whose number I've already tried to lower. I realized I've still let some in, so pls bear with me.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry tries to find an occupation for the summer as his friends are unavailable. Little does he expect to meet Narcissa Malfoy along the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: For some reason, I wrote Hogsmeade instead of Diagon Alley and changed it to the right one now.  
Edit 2: Edited a few smaller mistakes.

Harry stayed with the Weasley's that summer. He had no idea where the Dursley's where and he did not care. He had no more reason to come back there and so staying with the Weasleys was the obvious first choice. It was what he had wanted, ever since he had spent the first some time at the Weasley's that first summer. It felt like a lifetime back now. Well, in some way, for Harry it was.

The first few weeks Molly cried a lot. Harry supposed the others did too, they just did it quietly in their rooms. George came back to live with his parents for a while as well but he did not speak nearly as much as before. Percy moved back as well and it took him some time to not feel like an intruder anymore, trying to fit back into a family he had abandoned.

Arthur came back from work in the evenings bringing news of the war trials of the death eaters the new instated ministry of magic carried out. Every time that Arthur took Harry, Hermione or Ron with him to testify on one of those trials, Molly became angry, cried out "But they are just kids" and would not hear about it when anyone tried to argue with their age.

As the trials where any of the three were involved became fewer, Hermione decided to go look for her parents in Australia. Ron insisted on accompanying her and upon that being settled, the two of them looked at Harry. "Oh, no, you two go along without me" He felt like he would intrude and declined.

His two best friends soon parted, leaving him to spent most of his time with Ginny, or so he thought. Instead, Ginny's time was almost exclusively claimed by Percy who apparently made it his mission to catch up on all the time he did not spend with his siblings during the last few years by spending it with them now. Constantly.

At least he had the decency to let George grieve in peace, Harry thought, while mourning the time he could have spent with Ginny instead.

Staying in Ron's room, alone, with nothing to do, brings memories that are too painful. Harry thinks of everyone he has lost: His parents, Sirius, Remus, Dumbledore... he barely ever gets farther than that. Keeps himself from drifting off. Into the pain. Into blaiming himself. And sometimes getting angry.

And suddenly he finds himself visiting Andromeda Tonks regularly.

The first time he went there, it was out of an urge to see his godson. He thought about Remus and Tonks and how they had died for him. How they had made him godfather of their son. A son who is now an orphan. Like him. And he thinks of Sirius, his own godfather. How Sirius had offered Harry to live with him. And Harry was too young to offer that. He didn't even finish school yet. And Teddy had Andromeda, his grandmother, that could care for him. But the least he could do was visit.

So that's what he did.

Andromeda seemed glad to see Harry. She made him tea and they sat down in the living room and drank it while playing with the little human that changed his hair every few minutes.

"He's currently at that phase where they grab at everything", she said. Harry looked at her and then back to Teddy, the little ball, grabbing his finger with one hand, and his cloak with the other. He smiled and nodded. Andromeda returned the smile and it was ok.

The next day Harry came back. And the next day. And the day after.

He figured Molly would scold him for annoying the older woman so much but she was either too tired from grieving or figured Andromeda could use some company too. Probably a combination of both.

And Harry liked coming back because it was simple. She did not try to talk about Remus and Tonks. She acknowledged his pain without poking him to talk about it. He did the same for her. It became easier once he stopped seeing Bellatrix in her so much. And he realised the more he saw her as her own person, the more she opened up to him too.

Additionally, there was Teddy. Teddy, who had no idea that he had been born during a war in which his parents fought and died as heroes (Harry knew how insufficient that fact was, heroes, as if that made up for them dying), who had no idea even who these people were that played with them, just that they cared for him and that he loved them. And Teddy cried, and he laughed and oh, laughing was nothing he could hear anyone else doing right now. Harry even laughed sometimes too. So he understood when Andromeda sighed and exclaimed "He is a gift".

He also didn't fail to see the way Ginny looked at him when he was leaving while Percy talked about some topic Harry was sure Ginny did neither care about nor hear a single word of.

One day, they were sitting in the living room again, a blanket on the floor between the sofas, some wood pieces scattered around the toddler crawling around, that Harry recognised as the wizard equivalent of legos (not that Dudley had ever let him play with his Legos), tea and biscuits on the coffee table, there was a sudden knock at the door. Harry assumed it had just been some movement of Teddy's that he did not notice but a half a minute later he perceived another knock and was know sure it was coming from the door.

"I'll look who it is." Andromeda gathered her skirts and made her way towards the corridor. Harry heard the door open and... that was all. It stayed silent so long, that Harry instinctively grabbed his wand and stood up himself until he heard a quiet voice say: "May I come in?"

Harry recognised that voice. That he heard say, not so very long ago "Is Draco alive? Is he still in the castle?". She had saved his life for her son. And though he did not like what she did before, he respects her for this.

"Zissy", Andromeda gasped surprised. Belated reaction, Harry thought, or at least tried to think, while another part of his brain was at another place, with the last person that had called Narzissa that nickname. The other sister. Who is dead, Harry reminded himself, and breathing became gradually easier.

"Long time no see, Narzissa." Andromeda had now taken on a much harsher and colder tone than before. Much harsher than he ever heard her talk. Harry felt bad about listening in but he was also too curious to tune their conversation out.

"Would you hear me out once, Andra?", Narzissa asked carefully, "I know it is too little too late but would you hear me out before sending me away? If that's what you want, I'll stay away from you forever once I leave." Harry was surprised. This was very much unlike the Narzissa Malfoy he knew.

"Come in then", her sister said nonetheless and Harry heard the guest shuffle into the house before Andromeda stopped her again. "Just know that there is a very powerful wizard present in this house in this exact moment, so you'd better not try anything."

"I would not dare", Narzissa sounden appalled, "I might not have talked to you for a while but I value family too much and would not hurt you. I thought you knew."

Andromeda laughed. "The Blacks always valued family. And pure blood. That did not keep our them from hurting their own kin as soon as they saw them as unworthy of being family."

"I'm not a Black anymore. I'm a Malfoy", replied Narzissa, in a tone Harry was more used to hearing.

Her sister surpressed another laugh, this one much drier than the previous one. "And you think your husband's name makes it better?" When Narzissa fails to answer, Andromeda adds, more softly: "He's in Askaban now, isn't he?"

Harry supposed Narzissa gave a response in some kind of gesture because the next thing he heard was Andromeda asking if she wanted some tea which got him tensing up. He concentrated back on his godson, to conceal him eavesdropping on the whole of their conversation. Teddy squealed, as his hair matched the bright blue colour of the brick in front of him. Harry smiled and relaxed.

He tensed up again when Narzissa Malfoy entered the room. "Harry Potter", she identified.

"Mrs Malfoy", he nodded in her direction. They had seen each other last in her own trial. Harry had played a big role in keeping her out of Askaban in testifying for her. Repeating these words she said to him in the forest and how she had let him live. How she had lied to Voldemort and thereby saved his life.

When he volunteered to testify in Narzissa Malfoy's defence, Ron and Hermione had looked at him like he was out of his mind. He could hear Ron say "If we' die for them..." in his mind again, like he did when they went back to save Draco and Goyle in the room of requirement. But he insisted. "She saved my life", he repeated, "she lied to Voldemort." Ron still flinched when he heard the name but had been less and less so before they had parted to Australia. He had not told them the real reason, he wanted to testify for him. They would not understand; they had not seen Draco at the top of the Astronomy tower, trying so hard to kill Dumbledore but not being able to. Luckily for him, because otherwise, Harry might have had no scrupule to let both of his parents go to Askaban. But as it was, Harry could not, in good conscience, make Draco practically parentless. So he testified for his mother. Lucius had not been redeemable, he very much deserved his place in Askaban.

Narzissa Malfoy took the mug that her sister handed her.

"Thank you", she said, and it was the last thing that Harry expected. Or maybe not. At least they both knew what she was thanking him for.

The rest of the afternoon Harry spent playing with Teddy and further eavesdropping on the conversation of two of the Black sisters (although he wasn't sure if it counted as eavesdropping if they talked in the same room, literally just a few feet away from him, on the sofa right next to Teddy's blanket). When Narzissa left, Harry was surprised to find that their conversation had somehow resulted in reconciliation of the two sisters. He was not sure what he thought of the prospect of seeing Narzissa at Andromeda's place more often from now on. He would have to get used to it. It was not much time left until he went back to Hogwarts anyway.

This was the first time, Harry thought about going back to school again. His head and his life and been so full with other things after the Battle of Hogwarts and Voldemort's final demise that it did come as a surprise to him when their letters were in the mail and Molly announced to take Ginny and him to Diagon Alley for school books on Saturday. Percy directly proclaimed of his joining them which led to Arthur saying "Then the whole family will go."

No one payed attention to the look Harry and Ginny exchanged, both being sure that it was a scheme to get George out of his and Fred's room.

Arriving in Diagon Alley gave rise to a confusing feeling. Firstly, neither Ron nor Hermione were next to him and they would not meet up with them either. Secondly, the city did not at all resemble what it had been. It was livelier again, that was for sure; but people still moved carefully, uncertain of the peace and business surrounding them. Harry had known that people were working to restore the city and its shops and while the main school supply stores were open and running, many others were still in different states between destroyed and renovated. Harry was most surprised to see Ollivander's open and was more than relieved that he had been able to repair his wand. He would have hated it to go in there to buy a new one.

Molly asked him if he wanted to go buy a new owl and Harry thought about it but he couldn't bring himself to buy another animal. He felt like he would be replacing Hedwig, another victim that died by Voldemort's hand. For him. So he shook his head.

When they passed Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, Percy tentatively asked his younger brother: "George, can I go in and look around? I never saw what you and Fred made out of this place."

Molly audibly held her breath and Arthur, Ginny and Harry joined her in looking wide-eyed at Percy before expecting George's reaction. Surprising to all, he just smiled (it was a very small smile, just an uptick of the corners of his mouth but more than any of his family had seen since Fred's death) and said "I don't think you will like it, Perce" but led him to the door of his shop anyway.

"Should we follow them?", Molly asked her husband dumbstruck who, equally dumbfounded, replied "They are both adults, dear, they will get along just fine."

Ginny on the other hand, did not want to miss out on the possibility to get some of her brothers articles for the school year and dragged Harry into the store with her.

Harry himself had no interest in buying something this year but he stayed and watched Ginny browse the shelves and Percy screech.

All in all, their trip to Diagon Alley had been surprisingly calm and entertaining, even though it was obvious that they were still far from normalcy. Harry wondered if they would ever reach it.

Ron and Hermione came back to Britain just a few days before the beginning of the school year. Hermione wanted to spend these last days with her parents, leading Ron to come back to the burrow alone but Harry was glad to have at least one of his best friends back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be out soon and will finally take the trio to Hogwarts and have some real interactions between Harry and Draco <3


	2. Back to Hogwarts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry takes the train to go to Hogwarts. He takes in the changes that his friends and foes have undergone.

The Weasley's and Harry met Hermione at King's Cross. The others went about their business as usual but Harry could not but rest a few feet behind them and take everything in. The last time he had been at King's Cross, he had been talking to the Albus Dumbledore. There had been no trains, no people. He shivered at the thought.

"You coming?", Ron shouted and awoke Harry from his thoughts.

"Yeah."

Only now did he realise that people were staring again. He sighed. You would think they had stared at him enough for a lifetime already, he thought and hoped that this would be the last time people stared at him.

"We will join you two in your compartment later", Hermione called out as she dragged Ron away towards the prefect compartment. He followed them with his eyes until Ginny tapped his arm to get his attention.

"Let's search for Luna and Neville." He agreed and, after having said goodbye to Mrs Weasley, followed her into the train and through the croud of children and teenagers.

"I think I saw Luna's hair passing into that compartment", she pointed out and soon they found themselves in the company of her and Neville.

Neville talked a lot during the train ride and Harry remarked how his leadership position during the last year had really done him some good. Ginny and Luna chimed in from time to time with their own summer stories and remarks to what Neville was talking about while Harry contented himself with listening to his friends talk, sporadically nodding or saying "yes" when needed, otherwise admiring the dynamic they had apparently grown while him, Hermione and Ron were out hunting horcruxes. War changed people. He knew that now.

"They are staring at you again", Luna remarked with a small nod towards the younger students that were gatherin in front of their compartment door and dissipating as soon as four pairs of eyes locked onto them.

"I got used to it", Harry shrugged, "you will get accustomed to it too."

"Us?", Neville asked incredulously.

"You killed Nagini, Voldemort's snake, of course they are staring", Harry mentioned as if counting down what he had eaten for breakfast, "and the three of you led the resistance at Hogwarts, soo... you are definitely legends in your own right." And with these words Harry retreated from the conversation again.

Hermione and Ron joined them some time after, before leaving again to join the other prefects in bringing the new first years to the castle.

"It's weird to do this year again", Ginny contemplates in the thestral-drawn carriage. Harry turns his head towards her.

Neville adds "I don't think this year's and last year's curriculae will be in any way similar though. And I, for one would very much like to have my NEWTS before leaving school, so I have no problem retaking last year's classes." Harry loves them very much in this moment. He could not have survived another minute of observation of how many students are staring at the thestrals right now.

Seeing McGonagall at the headmaster's place of the teacher table put a smile on Harry's face that could not be wiped away. He sat down at the Gryffindor table next to Neville and Ginny and looked around the room. Ron and Hermione were looking over the new first years waiting to be sorted. Harry looked around to see who came back this year and who didn't. He was glad to see that most of his class mates were still sitting at their respective tables, even though more than enough were missing. Some, he hoped, had been kept at home by their parents to be homeschooled, but others, like Colin Creevey or Crabbe, he knew they would be never sitting anywhere again.

Thinking of Crabbe, Harry's eyes drifted along the Slytherin table to look for Malfoy and Goyle. He found Goyle first and was surprised not to see his friend next to him. On the other hand, Harry never believed that what they had could have been called friendship, but it was the closest thing to friendship they had.

He found Draco sitting at the other side of the table, next to Pansy Parkinson who obviously tried to talk to him but turned away frustrated towards Blaise Zabini, sitting at her other side. Seeing Draco there, at the Slytherin table, hunched into himself, painted a picture Harry was never expecting to see. Only the song of the sorting hat got his attention back to the event.

After a year away, getting back into school routine was weird, to say the least. Ron and Hermione were twitchy, a consequence of their consistent moving to keep the Death Eaters away, Harry supposed.

And by spending most of their summer traveling to Australia in search of Hermione's parents, they did not get the readjustment period Harry had spent at the burrow.

"Man", exclaimed Ron after the first day of classes, "why do we have to do our NEWTS anyway? We killed the D⸺ Voldemort. I don't think we have to prove that we are capable to be aurors anymore!"

Harry expected Hermione to disagree but she remained silent. Her frustrated turning of the pages of her book (Arithmancy, Harry believed) led him to the conclusion that even though she loved learning, she agreed with Ron.

She shuffled through her book and papers for a few more minutes before putting her pen down and proclaiming: "I do not want to become an auror though and therefore I do need to stay in school."

The boys did not know what to say to that and started to work on their own homework.

The next morning they had Potions class. Reluctantly, Slughorn had staid to teach another year and so they were not necessarily running late... but they weren't as early as they had been to dodge Snape's wrath either. So when Hermione, Ron and Harry were arriving in class, only three exact places were left.

"Great", Ron groaned, "we'll have to sit with Malfoy."

"It's your fault we're that late", Hermione reminded him, "so stop complaining."

Draco looked at them as if he heard them but his death glare lacked the force it used to have.

The three of them made their way over and unpacked their books and ingredients. Harry sat down next to Draco, so that his friends would be able to sit next to each other. The moment Harry got the first vial out of his bag, Draco pulled his own things closer to him, as if trying to take up as little space as possible. It's the same behaviour he had noticed at the Great Feast.

"Why are you not sitting with your friends anyway?", poked Ron.

"That is none of your business, Weasley", sneered Draco.

Slughorn started the class and Harry actually enjoyed it. Sure, he did not live up to Slughorn's expectations he built up with the help of Snape's Potion book two years ago, but Slughorn had been a much calmer teacher even then and Draco did not try to pick a fight once which meant he arrived to learn something in this class even though he could never live up to Hermione, and to his disdain also Draco.


	3. Peace?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry takes a detour to the library

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking some liberties with some of the characters and my interpretations of them, I hope you will not mind. If anything bothers you too much, let me know :)

Very soon Harry felt himself reminded of his OWLs year. Between classwork, Quidditch, eating and sleeping, there was not much time for anything else, if any. He barely got to visit Hagrid, and when he did, he was mostly alone due to Ron and Hermione having some prefect business to attend.

He grew frustrated fast. When the first Hogsmeade weekend finally came around, Hermione and Ron planned to use it for a date. This would have been no problem for him if Ginny hadn't announced that she and Luna would do a girls afternoon (which excluded him from coming along) and Neville hadn't promised Professor Sprout to help her in the Hogwarts greenhouses. Having therefore nothing to do at Hogsmeade, Harry decided to stay in the castle.

He had too much homework to do anyway to be able to spend his time leisurely and due to some fifth years loudly practicing charms in the Gryffindor common room (Harry was obviously not the only one to forego the Hogsmeade trip to study) which made him unable to concentrate, he made his way to the library.

As he was descending from the tower, some younger student caught up to him. From the fact that Harry's presence seemed to excite him, Harry judged the boy had to be a first year and looked down to ask him if he needed some help. The boy however declined "no, no, I don't need help, I just wanted to ask..." and started to bombard Harry with questions. The similarities of this boy's manner with that of Colin Creevey when Harry had first met him was too striking not to make a panic-stricken retreat into the nearest corridor and into the first open door he could find, leaving the other student just the same way he had reproached himself for having treated Colin after seeing his dead body.

His breath had quickened, much too fast to be only an effect of the exercise of the run he had made to get away from the boy, much too fast to be anything than panic-induced stress. It must have come from him being reminded of young Colin, one who had died because he had idolised Harry, and so it was Harry's fault that he died, for he was too young to stay and fight.

Harry still clutched the door handle and now laid his head against the cold door to steady himself and try to even his breath out. No, he tried to tell himself, no, a death eater killed him. He might have snuck back because of me but I did not kill him. It was a death eater. It's Voldemort's fault, it's Voldemort's fault, it's Voldemort's fault.

And surprisingly enough, "it's Voldemort's fault" worked as much as a mantra as to slow his respiration down to a degree at which he was able to unclench his hand and let go of the handle. He lifted his head, massaged his forehead where it had laid against the door and he was sure of now sporting a giant red blot and took a step back. Realising that he was standing on tiles, he tried to remember what floor he had fled to and knowing it had been the second, hoped he did not find himself in the girl's bathroom. Fully expecting Myrtle to comment and ridicule his misery as soon as she was in his field of vision, he turned around to face her and to be surprised to find both Draco Malfoy, wand drawn, and the ghost in question staring quietly back at him.

"I do not plan to hurt you", Harry meant to sound annoyed but instead just sounded tired.

"We figured as much", his not so favourite ghost announced in her whiny voice, "you looked like you would hurt yourself before you'd be able to hurt anyone else"

"Last time we came across each other in this room, I ended up bleeding on the floor. I am not sorry for not wanting it to happen again."

Hary nodded. He could not even reproach him for it.

"Yeahh", Harry dragged the word, "I guess I should say sorry about that."

The two boys stood there staring at each other. Draco, Harry was sure, was just dumb-founded by Harry having apologised and Harry himself did not know how to act after that apology either. Neither him nor Draco had any intention to provoke the other as they had before and so Harry thought it best to leave.

As he turned around to grab the door handle he had clutched so tightly just a few minutes before, he heard a small "Thank you" from behind. If Draco's voice had not lowered about an octave since they were kids, Harry would probably mistaken it to come from Myrtle, who, he observed, was surprisingly quiet today.

"What for?", Harry asked in bewilderment.

Draco seemed to be torn between being honest and putting his usual mask on. But apparently deciding to settle on the first, said: "For speaking in defence of my mother. I know you could not care less about my life but I want to thank you for making it possible for her to stay with me."

"I cannot pretend to like your father, I don't, and I thoroughly believe that he deserves his place in Askaban, or the choices of your mother, or yours for that matter, even though I don't know how much of a choice they really were in your case, but I do not hate you as much as to want you to live without your parents. And your mother saved my life, after all, and so there was no evil in letting you have her."

Draco nodded to that declaration.

Harry took that as his cue to leave.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Myrtle started talking her normal amount and though a weird circumstance, as Harry could not make out the words she was saying, he meant to think no more of it and proceeded to continue his way to his original destination.

Ron and Hermione came back from their date happily and Ginny also graced Harry with a smile before heading towards the girls' dormitories, so in combination with his actually having been able to get some work done at the library (which he was sure Ron would be copying the following morning), Harry looked at the afternoon as a success.

The school year continued on as usual, Hermione studied and reminded them to do their own work, Ron raved on about the NEWTS being unnecessary for Harry and himself due to them wanting to be aurors (none of them realising how quiet Harry had been on the subject lately), Harry had his hands full with Quidditch Captain Business (and so far he had not lost one single player and was really positive about kicking Slytherin in the ass another year.

Draco and Harry never talked about their conversation in Myrtle's bathroom (not that they had ever much place or reason to do so) and their mutual non-provocation was now understood by both sides as exactly what it was, which led to a lack of the alertness they had been used to from their first year at school and subsequently to a calmness around each other that not only surprised both of them but had also seemed impossible before.

When Ron and Hermione mentioned it to him, Harry just said: "I don't think he'll try to give me trouble anymore, so I don't need to be on the lookout" and he wasn't even lying. His best friends weren't convinced though.

Still, Harry and Draco did not talk at all, even tho sitting right next to each other in Potions. So it came as a surprise to all three of them, meaning Ron and Hermione along with Harry, when Draco after visibly tensing up and seemingly quarreling with himself, announced to Harry "You need to stirr it 7 times not 5" and being met with three surprised if not doubtful pairs of eyes added, in a more proud tone than he had used before, "that the two of them would not know, I figured, but I thought at least you had listened to Snape's lessons, Granger."

Hermione looked at him dumbfounded and tried to remember if Snape, indeed, ever did say so until she saw Harry stirring a sixth time and hissed at him.

Harry did not let her destroy his calm. "It's not the same, Hermione. If it comes directly from Snape, it's fine."

"I'm not going to take any risks anyway", hissed Hermione and stirred her pot exactly 5 times.

"But are you sure, he did not say that last year, while we were away?", Harry asked Draco casually. He knew that he was walking onto thin ice but hoped to be able to get an answer out of Draco that would indulge Hermione's pride. He was kind of content with their current peace and did under no circumstance want one of his best friends fighting with his former enemy instead.

"It is possible", answered Draco, quietly, without the pride that had tainted his former response, "you missed a whole school year of lessons after all."

All four of them stayed quiet after that. They feared breaching a delicate subject and starting a fight, or on Harry's side also offending someone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare for some of my favourite post-war and post-deatheater Draco headcanons, starting next chapter with... Quidditch


	4. Quidditch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry talks to his friends and makes an interesting discovery at the Slytherin/Gryffindor Quidditch match.

"What were you doing there, Harry?", Hermione reproached him afterwards when they were out of hearing range of anyone they shared a class with.

"I was trying not to start a fight with him", he answered obligingly.

"I told you to not pick fights with him years ago and now is when you actually take the advice?"

"I am sure, Harry has a reason for it", Ron chimed in, while seeming absolutely not convinced of it.

"Yeah, I have. Look, you have probably seen that he is different now."

"You mean, that he always seems to be alone instead of in the company of Goyle, Pansy and whoever were his friends before and that he does not talk and that he said something helpful to you today? Yeah, I've noticed." Harry's surprise must have shown on his face at Ron's observation because he added: "What? That bloke has been a pain in the ass to us for 7 years, I would notice when he stops."

Hermione glared at him for that as if he had personally injured her but Harry continued.

"Exactly. Before I have fought with him because he was arrogant, because he insulted one of you, because he provoked me or because he was a literal death eater doing a job for Voldemort. He hasn't given me any reason to this year. And I am very tired of fighting, so I will do what is in my power, not to change that."

To his surprise, Hermione nodded: "You are right, it is probably a good idea."

"It's Malfoy!", Ron cries out.

"Yeah, but Harry spent a lot of time at Andromeda's over the holidays, right?", Hermione started, looking like challenging Ron, "And he will continue to do so as Teddy is his godson", she spared an inquisitive glance at Harry, as if to make sure that he had actually his obligations as a godfather in mind and not only looked for a distraction while they were away, "and as Narcissa is Andromeda's sister and apparently now wants to act like it and judging from your mom's letters", again her look fixed on Ron, "Andromeda lets her, we can expect that sometime she will bring over her son, which as you know is Draco, which makes him Andromeda's nephew, ..."

"I got it, 'Mione, come to the point."

"Andromeda just lost all of her family besides Teddy. And then her sister shows an interest in reconciliation and if Harry and Draco don't fight in school, there is a high chance that they won't fight at Andromeda's either. And I don't think that would be good for her."

They were silent for a few seconds before Ron asked: "Do you really think Harry has to spend time with Malfoy? Outside of school?"

Hermione sighs. "Harry doesn't have to spend time alone with him but they are bound to at least run into each other at Andromeda's. And just think of Teddy's birthdays." Ron grimaced in obvious disgust at the thought of that. He clapped Harry on the shoulder. "I pity you. You will never get rid of Malfoy now. I told you it was a bad idea to be a witness for Narcissa Malfoy's trial. And see, it only did you trouble." Harry was not so sure of it.

Hermione's explanations got him food for thought though. Yes, he had wanted to keep Narcissa Malfoy from going to Askaban and yes, he tried to make nice with Malfoy, but, mostly for his own peace of mind. And yeah, he had thought it a good idea of the two Black sisters reconciling if Narcissa was willing to put in the effort but never has he thought of the idea of having to have to sit through yearly family dinners with the Malfoys as Hermione was implying. He should have thought about it, he really should, and yeah, it gives him another reason to let his rivalry with Malfoy go. Harry planned to be everything in a godfather that Sirius never had the time to be for him and so for Teddy's sake, it was in every interest not to taint his birthday dinners by whatever stupid thing him and Draco would be fighting about.

It was easy keeping his intentions. Besides sitting next to each other in Potions, Harry and Draco did not come close to each other in their daily routines. And not being an asshole to Draco in Potions was very easy when Draco was not being an asshole to him, even downright helpful from time to time.

"I think, he also doesn't want to blow this for his mother", Ron theorised when they were talking about it one evening instead of focusing on their History of Magic homework.

"Yeaah, Andromeda is probably also a better aunt than Bellatrix. Fewer expectations to fulfil."

"I would not be so sure about the fewer expectations part", Hermione chimed in, "considering Draco was a Deatheater and Andromeda cast out of the family for marrying a mudblood. She will very sure expect them to denounce their former ideology and act accordingly."

"But", she finished, "I agree that the expectation of being a decent human being is probably easier to fulfil than the expectation to kill someone." Harry agreed silently and his thoughts drifted off to that evening in the astronomy tower. To Draco shaking and shivering and insecure.

"Why do you insist on saying mudblood?", Ron sighed resignedly but neither Hermione nor Harry paid attention to it.

November brought the Gryffindor/Slytherin Quidditch game and Harry was very much looking forward to it. The school year so far had been calm, and even though Harry had expressed his wish for it to be so and even influenced it himself, it did pose a great contrast to even the calmer of his previous school years. He looked forward to a little bit of excitement and the good kind of adrenaline that filled his body in sports.

Harry could safely say that he had trained the Gryffindor Quidditch team into top form and so if none of his players received an impromptu injury, his only concern was the weather. They had luck though: The day of the game, not one cloud was to be seen in the sky and even the temperatures were welcoming; it was surprisingly mild for mid-November.

The Hogwarts Quidditch games had become even more popular this year, with many parents filling the ranks. Harry believed they could also use some fun to take their minds of ministry work that still mostly concentrates on the past war (he assumes that this will go on for many many years, although gradually becoming less and less) and that the rest is just there because they now value every opportunity of seeing their remaining family members infinitely more after the losses they had endured during the last year (and some even long before).

Harry did not mind at all. He searched for familiar faces on the tribunes and sure enough, all of the surviving Weasleys, minus Charlie, were there to support their children or siblings (Harry was very much included in these words by now).

Fleur and Bill had matching Gryffindor makeup on their cheeks and had clothed Victoire in a tiny Gryffindor jumper (Harry did not know they existed but he would also not exclude Molly having made it herself for her grandchild for this exact occasion). Even George wore a smile on his face and Harry was very glad that his friend was finally getting better.

Not far away from them were their friends standing and cheering, Harry could hardly stifle a laugh. He had missed that ridiculously large lion hat Luna used to wear to their every game.

At last, Harry let his gaze drift over his own and the opposing team. While he expected to see Draco Malfoy opposing him as he had done so many times in the last seven years, he did not expect him sheepishly waving at somebody in the crowd. Harry's head snapped up, and unsurprisingly saw Narcissa Malfoy standing between the other Slytherin supporters. She smiled at him and lifted her hand in reply.

Narcissa Malfoy held herself just as tall and as proud as she did before but it was still obvious that something had changed. From outer appearance not as much as her son, who now seemed to want to blend in instead of standing out. Harry guessed that her pride was a farce now but had been genuine before. He did not know her well enough to be certain though.

And even though he had never been close to her son either, after years of being enemies, he did know him well enough to see the change clearly.

Draco met Harry's gaze and lifted his head in a way to challenge him but Harry was surprised to find that it was purely in the spirit of sport, having remarked no glint of hostility in his eyes.

Well then, he could work with that.

The match started calmly. Gryffindor lay ahead but never very much. Still by enough points that Harry could readily catch the snitch when he perceived it but not enough that he could let Draco catch it first. The two of them fell into a routine, circling above the field, Harry sometimes shouting commands at his teammates.

Until he saw gold glistening and realised that Draco saw it too and cue to the both of them following the fast gold ball, racing each other, too concentrated on the ball as to care about crashing into each other as soon as one of them caught the snitch. They tumbled over each other, Harry making sure of clenching his hand around the snitch as hard as possible, while the Gryffindor part of the arena erupted into cheers.

Harry could free himself more easily and standing up, handed the snitch to his left hand, to be able to offer Draco the right. Before taking it, the other boy swiftly pushed down his left sleeve that must have ridden up during their fall over the place where Harry knew his dark mark must be situated. Harry tried not to look at it but failed and saw the very last pieces of something colourful before Draco had fully covered it. The pressure on his right hand took his gaze back to Draco's face which made very clear that Harry better not mention anything he might have been able to see. Harry was just glad they were on friendly enough terms now for him to even accept his hand. His curiosity could wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry for the very short description of the actual game. I am not much of a sports fan and the Quidditch matches were some of my least liked parts of the books. I thought I would spear you the horror of reading me trying to write any kind of sport commentary.  
Also there is now already a hint of one of my favourite post-deatheater!Draco headcanons :D


	5. Solidarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry has a panic attack

The Winter holidays approached and Harry thought of visiting Hagrid one last time before they left for the burrow. In one of her last letters to Ron, Molly had proposed that they all came to the burrow over Christmas and that Hermione's parents were included in the invitation. So during the last Hogsmeade weekend, Harry, Ron and Hermione looked for presents they hadn't considered needing to buy presents for, leading to Harry suggesting they also bought something for Hagrid.

Hogsmeade was recovering and Harry was honestly surprised by the great difference he could already make out, although he supposed that most of the change in air was due to the students flooding the shops and streets who were intent on enjoying themselves and being happy during their trip. Still, fewer shops were open than used to and Harry had problems finding something he was satisfied with. In the end, he decided for a toy for Fang that Harry was sure Hagrid would appreciate and left Hermione and Ron to go on their date. They were meant to meet him again in the evening to go to Hagrid but Harry thought it would not hurt him to go there beforehand and spend the time waiting for his friends already with Hagrid.

After taking a detour to bring the other gifts to his dormitory, Harry arrived at Hagrid's hut and knocked. The half-giant did not answer and neither did his dog which led Harry to believe the two were somewhere about the Hogwarts grounds. Having nothing else to do (besides that one herbology text that he can just as well write over the holidays), Harry decided to look for them. And if whatever Hagrid was giving his time to was not something as curious as the Blast-Ended Skrewts, Harry might even offer to help him.

Setting off towards the Hippogriff enclosure (which Harry thought was as good a guess as to Hagrid's whereabout as everything else), Harry took in his surroundings. He walked much more slowly than he normally would because it had just occurred to him that the last time he had walked as far as he was planning to into the Hogwarts grounds, he had been walking to his death. He would not enter the Forbidden Forest but still – ever since being back at Hogwarts for his last school year, Harry had not been farther into the Hogwarts ground than to Hagrid's hut.

Harry was thinking of that moment again, that moment he stepped into the Forbidden Forest, in search of Voldemort. And his brain, helpfully, provided him with the picture of Voldemort waiting there, amongst his followers, to kill the boy who lived, to kill him. He thought of the people around him, the Carroway siblings and what they had inflicted on his friends and classmates, Bellatrix carving "mudblood" into Hermione's arm at Malfoy's mansion, killing Sirius, Dobby, Tonks. Harry's breath hitched, before fastening. His throat felt tight, like with every breath less oxygen would flow into his lungs. They died for you, a small voice told him in the back of his head. They wanted to help you and they died. When he started to shake, his hands searched for something he could steady himself against. His head stayed with the people that died. That were close to him. He stumbled forward until he found a wall he could lean against. They would not have been at the forefront of this war if they had not been close to him. He slid down and laid his head on his knees.

He had thought he was over it. These thoughts had been prominent in his head while he was still fighting Voldemort. While he could keep more people from dying. But it's done now. Harry tried to slow his breathing down, failing miserably. These thoughts still come back. He knows that it's Voldemort's fault, that Voldemort killed all those people, or his followers did. That had Voldemort not marked him as his equal in his childhood, everybody he knew would not have been in danger. At least not as imminent. But then it came back to him and he couldn't handle it. He tried to remember how he made it go away last time. Right. It's Voldemorts fault. It's Voldemort's fault. its voldemorts fault...

His heart slowed down and his breath became steadier. He stayed like this a few minutes, his head on his knees, or he would have if his slowing breath hadn't made him tune into his other senses again.

He heard a noise, and when he was finally able to identify that noise, suppressed sobs, he looked up and turned his head towards it. A few metres away from him, another figure caught his eye.

Crouched down against the wall in a similar pose to himself, he recognised that pale blond hair covering the other boy's head.

Harry groaned internally. Two times that it happens and both of these times it had to be Malfoy witnessing it. The two of them may be friendly to each other right now, and Harry hoped this did not go away, but he was still less than thrilled to give Draco leverage to use if he ever wanted to revive their old rivalry.

"If you don't mention this", Draco managed to say between two sobs, gesturing to himself, "I won't comment on whatever that was."

"Yeaah", Harry answered gladly, "I'm not going to get up yet though."

"Yeaah", Draco agreed, "I'm not ready to get up either."

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes. Draco still tried to push his sobs down. Harry counted his breath. When Harry heard shuffling from the other boy, he assumed he would stand up to go back to the castle. Instead, Draco only changed his position so he could sit against the wall more comfortably.

"You saw my mum when she was at my aunt Andromeda's place, didn't you?", Draco suddenly asked, sounding as if it had taken him some effort to ask this question.

"Yeaah", Harry answered, wondering what Draco was aiming for.

"Did she –", Draco sounded as if still having a lump in his throat, "did she look happy?"

Harry thought of the first time Narcissa came to visit her sister, the tension, the carefulness, the insecurity. The broken trust that had to be mended. And he thought of the few meetings that had come afterwards. Careful conversations. First smiles. Not more. He left before they could even begin to start calling themselves sisters again.

When he looked at Draco, he was startled by how young he was looking. Sure, they had both fought in a war, had been pieces in a game construed around them, that he sometimes forgot how young they all were. They were still finishing school. Barely of age. He was broken, Harry realised.

"I don't know what to tell you", Harry said truthfully, "they just started meeting before the school year started; I haven't seen much of it. It seemed like they were both trying but..." Harry thought how to put it into words.

"They lived very different lives for a very long time?", Draco suggested. When Harry replied with a nod, he added bitterly: "Yeah, I figured."

They sat in silence again, Draco facing the sky and Harry looking at him, trying to figure out what was happening in that other boy's mind.

"I hope they figure out how to make it work", Draco sighed, "My mum has been thinking about things. Things that separated them. Turns out she had been thinking about that for a while now. And I –", his voice broke, "I didn't even know about it. I was so focused on proving myself and making them proud that I didn't realize she was looking into alternatives for us."

"She saved your life, didn't she?", Draco asked after a pause, "that's what you said why you witnessed for her and that's what you said at the trial, right?"

"Yeaah."

"I think that's when she decided that that was no life for us anymore. That we had to change something."

"Your parents weren't fighting after that", Harry supported, "they were only searching for you."

"Yeah", Draco replied bitterly, tears gathering in his eyes, "they were not fighting. They were looking for me. My mum even went directly against the Dark Lord by saving your life and allowing you to win. And I – ", the first tear rolled down Draco's cheek that was still red from the last time he'd cried, "I had gone back to the castle to stop you. I was so determined to foil your plan, whatever it was, to help the Dark Lord, to defeat you. I have done what people told me to do. What I was taught was right. I did not believe in everything of it. I did not want to kill Dumbledore. But I tried to prove myself. To prove I could do what's right, even if I didn't understand it. To learn in the end, that it was wrong. I don't know how long my mum has thought it was wrong."

"Probably when she made Snape do that unbreakable vow", Harry chimed in and asked himself where that was coming from.

"You knew of that?", Draco looked down at Harry for the first time since talking. Harry realised how small he looked even though he was taller than Harry by at least a few cms.

"Yeaah", Harry replied reluctantly.

"Huh", Draco's face twisted thoughtfully, "that actually makes sense. Oh God, she's been thinking about it even longer than I believed!" The blond boy buried his face in his hands. "And what did I do? I nearly killed Katie Bell! I poisoned Weasley! I – " Draco looked up at Harry, drying the tears on his face with his sleeves, like remembering for the first time who was sitting next to him. Who he was talking to.

"Why do you let me talk?", he asks, vulnerable.

"You seemed like you needed someone to listen", Harry shrugged, "and listening to your problems kinda took my mind off of my own."

Draco looked at him in disbelief. "You are Harry Potter. You are a war hero. What problems could you possibly have?"

Harry scoffed. "We both fought in the war. You're not the only one who has scars."

After a short while, he added: "You're also not the only one who's made mistakes. Or who has death's weighing on his conscience."

"I'm sorry", Draco talked so quietly, he was barely above whispering, "it's just", he cleared his throat to find his voice again, "you were fighting for the other side. The good side, as it turns out. I just don't – I didn't think you would regret things. I know you lost people. But I hadn't thought you might have regrets too."

Harry snapped at him. "Well, I have."

They are back at silence again.

Harry decides this might be as good a time to leave as ever and starts bracing himself on the wall to pull himself up.

"The deal still stands, right?", Draco asked equally fearful and hopeful, "you don't tell anyone about this while I don't either?"

"I haven't told anyone about the fact that you prefer the presence of Moaning Myrtle to all of your Slytherin friends, I won't mention this either."

Even though obviously being surprised by the first part of his reply, Draco seemed nevertheless satisfied by the whole. Harry got up to leave. After a few steps, he heard the other boy talking again.

"Thank you. For listening."

Harry nodded and took up his path.

He did not find Hagrid at the Hippogriff enclosure. They met halfway to the Great Lake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to do some research and I hope I portrayed Harry's panic attack realistically.


	6. Winter holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that there is not much happening in this chapter. It contains a few things that are important tho and therefore needed to be written.

Soon, it was time for the Winter holidays. Harry was looking forward to spending a calm Christmas with the people that had become a family to him, including dropping in at Andromeda's to see how much Teddy had grown in the last 4 months.

And he was not disappointed. Christmas was the calmest it had been in years. At least that was what Harry felt like. Considering the number of people sleeping and eating at the burrow, calm was not the word that anybody that could listen to the noise would use. But maybe, when describing Christmas as calm, Harry had not meant the volume level in the house or the agitation that these kinds of holidays excites especially in children (and, let's be honest, as long as your parents live, you don't cease to be a child during the holidays), but his state of mind. And in that case, it would be very fitting.

Hermione's parents fit in way better than anyone expected, although their uneasiness regarding the Wizarding War and the time they spent in Australia could match the sadness Molly felt, spending the first Christmas without Fred. Those who were there at the time, remembered Molly's crying the first Christmas that Percy had not come home but it seemed like everyone had made a silent pact to not mention it and Percy had made own of his own of making himself as agreeable as possible.

George told them, he had found Percy studying household spells weeks before Christmas in an attempt to perfect them in time and all of the Weasley's were stunned when Molly let him indeed help her.  
Hermione's parents wanted to make themselves useful too but Molly insisted that they were their guests and she would under no pretence let them help when she could do in quicker with magic. There was no use to making them exert themselves. Which meant the two of them spent the holidays observing and marvelling at all of the wizards in the house using spells and charms. They also observed the relationship between their daughter and Ron but found themselves quite satisfied and promptly accepted both of the boys into their family. Nothing could wipe out the stupid grin Ron was wearing for at least an hour or two.

Fleur had kissed Harry on the cheek again when they arrived at the burrow, and continued to do so every morning but had included the rest of the people present in the mornings. At the confused faces of their guests, Molly had exclaimed: "It's a French custom to do so and I find it very charming. They seem to be more tactile, the French" which prompted Arthur to ask if it was a wizard custom or if muggles tended to do it too and led to a discussion of differences between French wizard and muggle customs that nobody but Arthur and Fleur were interested in (Percy chimed in from time to time when something caught his attention, though).

George was much more talkative than he had been in the summer. In fact, he was nearly as communicative as before Fred's death which Harry understood was due to Percy helping him recover. "I was surprised when Perce asked me for a job at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes", George told him, "I think his mixture was a bit of a mixture of his need of a new job and his guilt of abandoning the family before. I think, he feared I would give the shop up and would throw our legacy away. I think Fred would like this new Percy helping me in the shop. I think we would have given him the job anyway. He lets me try out my new products at him. Fred would have loved that. And he's a fast learner. I mean, he will never replace Fred, and I know that's not what he's trying to do, but he's good at what he's doing. Although... don't tell him that I said that. I would never tell him that. It stays our little secret." He concluded with a smile. Harry couldn't help returning the smile at the sight of seeing his friend a little happier again.

Their party was even more enlarged at the Christmas dinner, as Harry had invited Kreacher to eat with them. It was good. They ate, they talked, they amused themselves, they talked about the ones that should be there (Fred, Dobby, maybe even Remus and Tonks) and to the ones that are there.

Harry went to bed happy.

On the 26th, Harry showed up on Andromeda's doorstep. Teddy's present in one hand, Andromeda's smaller in the other, she opened the door, her grandson sitting on her hip.  
"Harry", she greeted him, "nice to see you, come in." He passed them to hang his coat on the hangers in the corridor, Andromeda smiling, Teddy looking at him suspiciously and half-hiding his face in her dress. Harry was sure Teddy did not recognise him, after all the last time he saw him was 3 months ago and he was pretty sure children at Teddy's age do not have that kind of memory to be able to remember him for what is a pretty long time considering the child's current lifespan.

Andromeda closed the door behind him, causing Harry's extremities to start to acclimatise to the warmth inside her house.

"I already have some other guests", Andromeda explained when Harry slipped out of his shoes, dreading what would come next, "you've already seen my sister here and I suppose you know my nephew from school."

"Yeeah", Harry said, bracing himself for the coming encounter.

Andromeda lowered her voice: "Considering their role in the war, I would not resent you for not staying long but", she seemed to search for words, "I hope you'd at least stay for tea?"

Harry nodded, seemingly causing the tension to seep out of Andromeda's shoulders.

She picked up talking again: "I hope you know that I would not spend time with them if I did not believe them to have changed or at least willing to change and I do sincerely believe we could be family again."

"You know I spoke in your sister's trial", Harry tried to reassure her, "and Draco and I are ... fighting less now." This was all he could possibly say with a good conscience and the knowledge that however low he spoke, the Malfoys might be able to make out parts of what he was saying.

Andromeda looked content though and he let her lead him to the living room where the two Malfoys, mother and son, were already sitting. Andromeda sat down next to her sister which left for Harry only to sit down next to Draco. Great, he thought, let's directly test my resolutions. To his surprise, the blond boy showed him a smile, a shy one but a genuine one, and Harry was so genuinely startled that he nearly fell off the sofa. Hesitantly, he returned it however, attempting to mask his surprise.

To his even greater surprise, Narcissa struck up a casual conversation, asking about school, where he was staying over the holidays ("The Weasleys. Of course. How are they?"), how he liked the weather, how he had come to Andromeda's ("I take it you haven't yet gotten your apparition licence?") and what his plans for the future were. For the last question, Draco opened his mouth for the first time that afternoon. "Mum, I told you he wants to become an auror." He rolled his eyes.

Narcissa huffed but proceeded to ask Harry: "Is that true?"

"Yeeah", Harry replied reluctantly.

"Well", Narcissa continued, unaware of Harry's hesitance, "it would seem fitting as you have quite the experience in that field, I would say. I don't doubt you'll be a great auror." Turning to her son, she said: "Auror. Would that not be an option for you, Draco?"

Harry looked between the two of them in bewilderment. His curiosity spiked as he realised that there was some conversation behind this seemingly innocuous question, presumably an old argument relating to Draco's career choice.

Harry noticed that he did not know anything about Draco's desired profession, although this did not surprise him all that much, considering their history of hating each other. Still, he wondered if Draco had even thought much about it, seeing as he had been very caught up in proving his allegiance to Voldemort to protect his family. He would not put it past Draco if he had prioritised survival over planning an uncertain future.

"I exceedingly doubt that the new ministry would gladly give me, someone with a known history in the Dark Arts, an auror position", Draco looked at his mother defyingly. Harry was taken aback by how open Draco mentioned his participation in the Dark Arts. Narcissa sighed: "I just want you to be happy."

"Then let me choose for myself."

"He's still so young", Andromeda barged in, "maybe let him travel a year after he finished school. Let him see something of the world, make some experiences. He may find something he is willing to pursue on the way."

"When he finishes the school year, he will not be that young anymore", Narcissa countered, "he has then done seventh year twice and is older then we were when we finished school."

Andromeda scoffed. "Look at them", she made a swift motion in the direction of both Draco and Harry, "they had to grow up way too fast in the war. We, as a society, should let them be children a little longer even though they are legally adults already. Let your child be a child. He had a lot of serious business to care about for the last years. Let him exhale. It's not like he would need the money."

Narcissa was silent. Draco mouthed a "thank you" towards his aunt. Harry felt himself relax.

He had known that Narcissa and Lucius loved Draco. Whatever other hideous things they've done in the past, if he could trust Narcissa or not, the one thing that he was always sure of had been that they loved Draco. But seeing them so casually be a family... it made the thought of having to see them more regularly much lighter; and the current afternoon pass much quicker than Harry had thought it would. Before he knew it, it was already dinner time. Harry parted at the same time Narcissa and Draco did.


	7. Job Talk

The holidays passed by and Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione had to go back to Hogwarts too soon for their likings. Harry had passed by Andromeda's two more times before they left, of which the Malfoy's joined them for one. Andromeda and Narcissa dominated the conversation during that afternoon but Harry did not mind at all. Although comfortable because of their casual domesticity and desire to please their host, Harry's conversations with the Malfoy's were awkward and he'd rather listen to them and play with Teddy than think of something to say. Something that does not involve the war or the Dark Arts. Because Draco might be comfortable talking about it in Harry's presence, Harry was... not.

No one minded Harry sitting down on the floor and taking some of Teddy's new games to play with him. It was general knowledge that Harry was there because he was Teddy's godfather and not because he wanted to spend time with any of the three of them. If anyone would have dared to say that out loud, Harry would have said that he and Andromeda had become friends during the time he spent here during the summer and the presence of the Malfoy's at her house neither changed that nor did he mind it.

Harry soon noticed Draco participating less and less in the conversation of his mother and aunt and caught him glancing towards Teddy and him.

"Do you mind if I join?", the Slytherin asked cautiously when the two women have walked away into the kitchen to make some tea.

"No", Harry slid his legs under his body to make place, while Draco hurried down from the couch.

When the Black sisters stepped back into the living room, they found the two boys playing quietly with the infant.

Back at school, the Seventh year students found themselves thrown back into the NEWTs stress. Ron started complaining again extensively, as much that Harry feared Hermione breaking up with him out of pure annoyance. It ended with her snapping at her to "Just leave already! Nobody is keeping you at school if you so desperately don't wanna be here." Ron closed his mouth dumbfoundedly.

Judging by the looks on his friends' faces, Harry wasn't the only one who felt reminded of an incident in a forest a little over a year ago. Ron stopped complaining and none of them ever mentioned it again. They all knew that the last thing Ron wanted was to leave without them. He would stay at school as long as Harry and Hermione were staying. And both of them were determined to finish this school year.

Harry felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. He knew he was using the calmness, security and normalcy of Hogwarts to delay a choice he knew he would ultimately have to make. And he wasn't sure anymore if his choice was the one that his friends thought it would be.

Even though Harry liked his Potions classes with Slughorn much more than he had the Potion classes with Snape, Harry dreaded the first class after the holidays. It was neither Slughorn's fault, nor the subject's, nor his homework's or even the NEWTs' fault. But Harry, yet only having met him twice at Andromeda's, had liked the version of Draco in his little family circle. It wasn't that Harry and Draco had suddenly grown close or that Harry hadn't told his best friends that he had met Draco at Andromeda's place, but there were only two ways the two of them sitting next together could go down now and Harry didn't have the slightest wish for any of those to happen.

Either, Draco would smile at him as he had when seeing him at Andromeda's and continue to treat him like he had while they had been playing with Teddy, leading to surprised stares from his best friends and uncomfortable conversations. Harry thought this to be very unlikely though, as Draco might have become nicer to him in school, and even helped him in Potions, there was no way he would show the same kind of friendliness and openness in front of Ron and Hermione. And Harry desperately did not want to go back to how they were before.

Harry had to admit to himself, that there were reasons why he used to hate Draco. And that these are the same reasons his best friends were still wary of him. Valid reasons. But still, Harry now felt a longing to be friends with the Slytherin he once so despised. The beginning of the school year had showed Harry that Draco needed friends, the time they ran into each other while Harry had a panic attack showed that they could be friends, and now that he's seen Draco in an unassuming environment, he realised he wants to be friends with the boy Draco is developing into.  
The boy that Draco did not show at school and therefore Ron and Hermione did not know. They would not understand. Ron would judge and although Harry could understand, he was already getting mad at him for it.

He had to get to Potions class eventually anyway, so Harry refrained from taking some Skiving Snackboxes to skip this one, instead bracing himself for whatever might happen and discourage him.  
As he had assumed, Draco was hesitatingly friendly, unwilling to be too open, but not unwelcoming. Harry could not help but shoot him a small smile when his friends were not looking, surprising and flustering the boy sitting next to him. Content, Harry got out his books and ingredients and relaxed.

They worked on their cauldrons, trying to perfect the potion Slughorn wanted them to do today. Draco helped Harry every now and then when he needed it but still, Harry's potions were far behind Hermione's and Draco's.

"Excellent, as always, Mrs Granger", Slughorn passed their table at the other side.

"Haven't you forgotten to stir it?", Draco asked with a look towards Harry's side of the table.

"Oh, yes, thanks", Harry looked into the book and back to his cauldron.

Slughorn had rounded the corner and was now standing behind them. With a look in their cauldrons, he asked: "What profession do you plan on pursuing after your NEWTs, Mr Malfoy?"

Draco shifted uncomfortably at his place.

"Oh, no need to be nervous", Slughorn chattered on, "but as you know, I used to be retired and now it's been three years since I'm back without a hint of Headmaster McGonagall searching for a replacement. As a consequence, I wanted to take matters into my own hands and ask among my most talented students. Mrs Granger over there will surely want to go into politics, so I won't bother her with some petty teaching position." He winked. "You, Mr Malfoy have always shown some interest in Potions and have really found back to your top form this year of which Professor Snape had informed me when I first came back to teach and it looks like you also did a good job in teaching Mr Potter some of your tricks." Slughorn gave Harry a small pat on the back. "So, Mr Malfoy, if you're interested and get the appropriate NEWT results, I might consider you a suitable successor." He took a few steps back. "Don't feel pressured in any way. I understand if you have another career envisioned. For you young people, teaching might not look like the most exciting job. Nicely done, Mrs Patil. Although it could use some more eye of newt." Slughorn continued his tour through the class.  
Harry looked over at Draco, whose cheeks have taken the colour of strawberries.

"Your mother is gonna be so happy", Harry could not help but say.

"Shut up, Potter", Draco muttered, turning away to hide that the colour of his cheeks had gone from strawberries to tomatoes.

Harry stifled a laugh at his flustered reaction but quickly returned to his own potion, highly content with the fond undertone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is a short one but we're getting there. Just a few more chapters left <3  
Also I assure you, it willl soon be obvious why i choose the title.


	8. The Great Lake

About halfway through February, Harry found himself sitting at the Great Lake, alone, skipping stones. It was a warm day, considering the time of the year; the mist had cleared and the grass Harry was sitting on had been no longer damp when he settled down. He had gone out here to calm down from his most recent panic attack (what the trigger was this time he didn't remember or at least he did not try to think of it). The cold air filling his lungs and withdrawing with every breath did not fail to calm him down. Faster than the last few times.

  
He knew he should finally go talk to Hermione and Ron about it. They had been used to his nightmares, they would not judge him for his panic attacks.

They both had their own grief, just as Harry, but he saw them put themselves together, figure out how to live after the war, or just continue their visions from before the war and; and Harry didn't want to disrupt their happiness. Now that there was no longer any real danger present, just his minds being cruel to himself, he felt no need or want to share it. But he knew he had to. He feared he would not be able to follow his friends on their path and after everything they followed him into, they deserved to know.

Lost in his somber thoughts, absentmindedly continuing to skip stones, Harry did not notice the person approaching him.

"Another panic attack?", a familiar voice asked, the blond boy sitting down next to him.

Harry looked over, taking in the distance between them, or rather the lack of it if you compare it to their former interactions, smiling a small smile.

"Yeah, but it's long over", Harry replied, "now I'm just sitting here contemplating my life." For a short moment, Harry asked himself why on earth he had said that but he relaxed as soon as Draco laughed.

"This seems like a great place for it, doesn't it?" He sighed. "I'm coming here to contemplate my life as well, more often than I'd like to admit."

"Is that why you're here?"

Draco laughed again and Harry had the thought that he could get used to hearing that laugh more often. "Yeeah."

"Thinking about what job to choose?" His teasing tone surprised Harry himself the most but he figured this was the one topic he was allowed to. Besides, it's basically like their old fights just that... the bite is missing to it now.

"Ugh", Draco groaned and let his head flop onto his knees he had just pulled towards his body, "not you too."

"Don't worry. I'm in no place to judge you. I don't even know myself."

Draco's face rocketed upwards to be able to take in the other boy's expression. "I thought you wanted to be an auror."

"Yeaah. But, you know", Harry tried to make it pass off as an offhanded comment, "seeing as I got that idea from a disguised deatheater, I might want to overthink that decision."

"But you'd be a good auror."

"I know."

A murder of crows flew above their heads. They looked up to observe the birds for a few minutes, distracted.

"Why don't you try to become an auror then?", Draco asked, his head still tilted upwards to take in the spectacle in the sky.

"I think I have enough of it." Draco looked down again, curiosity written on his face. "All these years, I've fought Voldemort – ", Harry did not miss the slight flinch of Draco's body, "– again and again and now that I've got some peace, I just – I don't wanna lose it." His voice took up speed. "I still don't trust the ministry. The deatheaters are out of office but how many of the old cowards will get their positions back, as powerful as ever. And if I go to work for them, as an auror or whatever else that doesn't even matter, I will become a symbol again. And I am sick of it. I will be used. When I'm thinking of picking up an auror's position, all I can think about is the times Scrimgeour asked me to work with the ministry, to show the population that they have everything under control. He wanted me to make people believe that I approved of what they were doing, their censorship, their lies to keep the public complacent. I don't want to be used anymore." He slowed his words down again. "I don't want to be a symbol again. I just want to live a life."

Draco nodded. "So what's the other option then? You got an idea what interests you?"

Harry fixed his gaze. "Do you want to take Slughorn up on his offer and apply as Potions professor?" He saw the blush climbing down the Slytherin's cheeks.

"I'd really like to", Draco admitted shyly, "but", he stroked over his left arm unconsciously, "I'm a former deatheater. I don't think I should be allowed to work with children."

"Did you know that Slughorn ran away from the deatheaters so they would not recruit him? He disguised himself as an armchair to get away from them."

Draco's face mirrored confusion.

"What I mean", elucidated Harry, "that I don't think Slughorn would even consider seeing you as a successor for him if he believed that."

"You don't understand", Draco replied strongly, "the mark will never go away. I can try to cover it up as much as I like, in the end, it's still there. I will stay a death eater as long as I live."

"You tried covering it up?", Harry asked, remembering the small bout of colour he had seen when Draco's sleeve had risen up during their Quidditch match.

"You're distracting from the question I asked you." Harry knew not to go back to the topic.

"Yeaah, sorry." He stayed silent for a minute. "You remember Dumbledore's Army, right?"

"Don't try – "

"I'm not deflecting!", Harry shouted. More quietly: "But you knew of it, right? And you remember?"

"Yes, I do", Draco sighed defeatedly.

"Hermione coaxed me into it. I was sceptic at first but turns out I'm actually not a bad teacher. The response told me I was quite good at it. A lot of the skills I taught them became very handy at some points."

"So, Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher, huh?"

"I could imagine it. I don't want to become some symbol of something that I don't support but that – that, I do support. I could educate future generations of aurors and teach all of the students necessary acts of self-defense we were deprived of. So they can stand up for their own and don't need some kind of hero to defend them. I could imagine that."

"So, we'll both be staying at Hogwarts then."

"No", Harry stated, "you are staying at Hogwarts. I don't know about me. I haven't even talked to McGonagall yet. She promised me once, she would help me become an auror and I don't want to disappoint her. And maybe the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher wants to keep that position. Or – "

"Relax", Draco smiled at him, "I'm very sure McGonagall would love for you to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. And that new professor, there's a rumour he's been eyeing the Muggle Studies teaching position, so don't worry about him."

"Thank you", Harry smiled at the other boy thankfully.

"What does Weasley think of your change of plans?", Draco asked, "I believe he wanted to become an auror too."

Harry ground his teeth. "He doesn't know yet."

Draco cocked an eyebrow.

"They are happy now." Harry didn't have to specify who he meant. "I don't want to put them through my problems."

"You always went through every problem together", Draco reminded him confused, "keeping them in doesn't sound very healthy."

"Yeah, because you're the prime example of healthy coping mechanisms. Meaning talking to ghosts instead of real friends –" "Myrtle is not that bad if you get to know her" "– basically not talking to any real people – " " I'm talking to you now" "yeah, and we've never been friends – crying in weird places and blaming yourself for things you couldn't have known better at the time – and don't even fight me on this, you were surrounded by deatheaters who spouted their warped world view left and right – and you're coming to the lake to sit solitarily to contemplate your life and end up talking to your former enemy about it –" "I never said, I was different. Although I do not quite agree with you on every point."

Harry grinned at him. "You don't have to. I'll stay with my opinion."

"Ok", Draco replied calmly, a teasing grin spreading on his face, "it seems like I have my whole work-life to convince you differently."

Harry laughed. "You wish."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just now realised that the reason JK Rowling made Harry an Auror instead of the DADA teacher as most of the fandom (me included) would like is probably to further distinguish him from Voldemort. After all, Voldemort was interested in the DADA position for a very long time and that would have been a further similarity between the two.  
But I am all in for breaking the cycle and all that stuff, so I acutally think the difference between the two could have been able to made out with Harry taking that teaching position as well. He would have had a very different goal in teaching them obviously.  
Sorry for this comment, it's got nothing to do with the story.
> 
> But I hope you liked this chapter and this interaction. It's probably my favourite in the whole fic :)


	9. Confrontations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ron, Hermione and Neville find out about Harry's change in feelings towards Draco. Ron is not amused.

The Hogwarts library was full every time of the day when the NEWT mock exams approached. Ron had coaxed Harry into alternating going to eat in order to assure them not losing their table to some other students while filling their organisms with nutrients. Harry was sure that Ron cared less about it himself and that it was more about the fact that Hermione would get grumpy if she couldn't revise at the library. Still, he attributed this plan mostly to Ron's wish to make his girlfriend happy instead of him just trying to avoid the negative repercussions of Hermione being grumpy. It was kind of cute, Harry had to admit. Compared to the disaster Ron's relationship with Lavender had been, Ron was a surprisingly good boyfriend to Hermione. They still fought a lot but Harry believed this might just be the way they work and that they need that. Some part of him was glad that it hadn't changed. A selfish part of him that did not want their friendship to change even a bit. Even though he knew that some change was bound to happen when two friends dated each other.

That Saturday Ron had gotten hold of a table for six students that was promptly occupied by the whole Gryffindor boys dorm plus Hermione. They spent the whole morning being busy, writing summaries, quizzing each other, trying not to get too distracted.

After lunch, Dean and Seamus left to meet up with some of the Hufflepuffs to practice some charms. This left two places open that the remaining four were aware would not stay empty for long if they did not have a convincing excuse. Unfortunately, the only accepted excuse for empty seats during exam seasons were mealtimes or toilet breaks and the four of them could not claim any of these reasons for their absent friends.

So when somebody asked to sit in one of the vacant places, Harry just replied "Sure, take a seat" without even looking up from the paper he was currently writing.

"When was the Statute of Secrecy signed again?", he asked the whole table, but mostly just Hermione.

"1689", she answered him absent-mindedly while the new person started to rustle with the papers they were taking out of their bag. Soon after, there was comparative silence due to them having started to work on their own papers and revisions.

"Warlocks' Convention?", he asked a few minutes later.

"Which one?"

"There's more than one?"

The fifth student snorted. "Do you ever pay attention in class?", they asked and only now did it occur to Harry's brain that it had been Draco who sat down with the Gryffindors.

"Does anyone pay attention in History of Magic?", Harry retaliated.

"Fair point. But I'm pretty sure Granger does."

Hermione looked affronted.

"Yeah, but even she knows all that stuff because she memorised The history of magic in first grade and not because Binns is such a great teacher."

"You memorised The history of magic?", Draco asked Hermione wide-eyed.

"You don't think she could?", Ron replied in her stead defensively, as Harry had witnessed him doing a lot of times throughout the years.

Draco reeled back but was spared the need to answer by Mrs Pince's permeating "ssshhh". None of them dared to speak for the next hour.

"What was that?", Ron asked later when they were alone outside of the library.

"What was what?" Harry asked as if he did not know what he meant. And his friends obviously knew that he knew because when he looked at them he was met with three interrogative glares.

He sighed. "I told you I didn't wanna start fights with Draco this year if it was not necessary."

"You did?", Neville asked confused.

"We talked about you not picking fights with him for Andromeda's sake and your own peace of mind but Harry, not picking fights and whatever that was are two different things!", Hermione elaborated to fill their fourth friend in on the previous conversation.

"Yeah", Ron added accusingly, "one could have thought you guys were friends." The obvious disgust in his voice made Harry reply "And what if we were?" with more heat than he intended to.

His friends stared at him dumbfoundedly and evidently speechless.

Neville found himself first: "Are you?"

"No", Harry replied, "I mean, maybe not yet."

"You want to be friends with Malfoy?", Ron sounded like he did not believe Harry could be serious.

"Maybe? Look, I don't expect you to like him. There are enough reasons for you not to. But I've met his mother and him at Andromeda's. They are thinking things over and they are heading in the right direction and that is not a reason for me to suddenly become friends with him but it's not a hindering point." He breathed in. "And now that we aren't fighting anymore and aren't literally on two different sides of a war, we kind of get along."

"You realised that over the winter holidays, right? And you didn't tell us because you knew how we would react, did you?", Hermione asked softly, seemingly contemplating what he said in her mind.

"There are rumours he tried to cover up his dark mark with a muggle tattoo", Neville threw in offhandedly, "I doubt it's true but that sounded like something one of those pure-blood Slytherins would say to discredit Malfoy to those that still hold onto their belief of blood purity, so it could possibly also be rooted in him showing a genuine interest in muggle things now."

"It's a muggle tattoo?", Something clicked in Harry's mind, "that makes sense."

"You know of it?", Ron asked incredulously at the same time that Neville sais "It's real?"

"Well, he told me he tried covering it up", Harry decided to omit the rest of the conversation. He didn't want to break Draco's trust. How weird that trust was something they had now. "And I saw a small glimpse of something colourful during the Quidditch match. So yeah, it's definitely real. I wonder what it is."

"You are talking about his dark mark?", Ron asked, his disbelief increasing with every question.

"You are making it sound like we're just casually talking death eater stuff", Harry reprimands his best friend, "but that's not it. He is a former death eater and it would be insincere of him to hush it up but he doesn't. And I don't either. You don't think that if I try to befriend a former death eater, I would just ignore that part of him, do you? I literally defeated _the_ deatheater and you think I would just go around befriending former death eaters without thinking about it?"

"To be honest, I don't think much thinking can be involved if you decide to befriend Malfoy", Ron murmured.

"Look", Harry used a softer tone now, "Ron, you don't have to agree with me and I especially don't expect you to befriend him either but please trust me on this."

Ron sighed. "I just don't understand why you would spend energy on befriending him after having spent so much energy fighting him throughout the last year."

"That's the thing. I really don't spend much energy on it. It comes surprisingly easy."

"Next thing you say, you don't want to become an auror anymore."

Harry hunched his shoulders uncomfortably, not knowing what to say.

"You don't want to be an auror anymore?", Ron questioned loudly.

"That was a long time coming, and it has nothing to do with Draco", Harry deflected, "can we please talk about that some other time? What is important now is that we're adults now, we – we all have to fight our own battles now, try to decide what to do with our lives. I was 15 when I decided all of it and since then all I concentrated on was survival. So now I have to rethink what 18-year-old me wants to do with his life. But I don't know. But what I do know right now is that Draco could need a friend and I am willing to try to be one."

"Oh Harry", Hermione exclaimed, "you can't save everyone!"

He swallowed. "Don't you think I know that?"

Ron sighed once more. "I still don't think it is a good idea but I know better than to try to stop you from proceeding. You will do it anyway. But don't say I haven't told you when you burn yourself."

"Is that all now?"

His friends nodded and Harry took it as a cue to end this conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if that makes sense to anyone but me but this is the scene I mostly based the choice of the title on.  
Also hi to the new readers I got :) I hope you enjoy reading this story <3


	10. You were an arrogant brat

Sometimes, though not very often, Harry still checked up on his friends on the Marauders' Map. From time to time, his eyes also wandered to search for "Draco Malfoy" and Harry could not pretend to know if it was just "old habits die hard" or him already starting to see Draco as a friend even though they haven't yet talked about it. Or really, spent any time with each other outside of family dinners at Andromeda's and panic attacks.

But, having told Ron he wants to pursue a friendship with their former foe and not planning to back out now (he would not give his best friend the satisfaction of an "I told you so") and feeling bad about Draco's only friend being a ghost (he knows he's joked about it and he also knows that he was probably friends with Nearly Headless Nick, or at least he had been in his first years of Hogwarts before all the stuff with Voldemort took up his time and energy), Harry got up to look for him when his name was legible in Myrtle's bathroom for the fifth time this week (it was only wednesday and Harry didn't spend all his free time looking for him at the map, not anymore).

Out of habit, Draco had his wand drawn as soon as he was in his line of sight. And yeah, Harry realised, there might be some trauma that both of them had to work through before really being able to be friends.

"I'm sorry", Harry offered tentatively.

"I don't believe you", Myrtle replied, coming closer, "I don't know what you want to apologize for but you don't mean it. You have always been all talking and then not doing, making promises you never intend to keep."

"Huh", Draco draws his brows tight, "that is not an impression of him that I would sign."

"I would. I mean, if I could sign anything. I'm still mad at him for never visiting me."

Draco raised his eyebrows at Harry questioningly.

"School got busy", he tried to deflect, "and then Voldemort..."

"Just excuses", Myrtle pouted, "Draco still found time to visit me."

"Well, you see, Draco and I were in very different situations at the time."

Draco looked highly amused by the exchange and had apparently no desire to take part. Harry was unable to resent him for that, after all, he hadn't treated Myrtle very well and Draco and her were friends, so it was only logical that he would not aid Harry.

Suddenly, he became uncomfortable. "I – I should leave you two." When he turned to the door, out of the corner of his eye he could see Draco and Myrtle exchanging a look.

As soon as Harry had made a few steps away from the closed door, he heard Draco say his name.

When he turned around, Draco was stepping into the corridor himself, closing the door behind him in a rushed way. He took a few steps towards Harry so that there were no more than two metres of space between them.

"Why did you come here?", Draco asked, after sparing a few glances around them, "you don't just come into Myrtle's bathroom for no reason. She told me that."

Harry was squirming under the other boy's eye but after a few seconds, he decided to admit: "I was trying to be nice."

"You were trying to be nice?", Draco asked, "to whom?"

Harry groaned. "To you."

"And in which way?"

"Look, I know that you said Myrtle isn't as bad when you get to know her and I agree. She's just lonely. But she will forever stay 14 and you are already now older than her and the age difference will just continue to get bigger. I just think you should have some friends your own age."

Draco looked stunned. "Are you offering a friendship to me?"

"Um, yeah?", Harry said, the duh clearly heard by both parties, "it does not look like you try to make friends and nobody else seems to be interested to start a friendship with a former deatheater –"

" And so should you."

"– let me talk. But Andromeda thinks you and your mother are on the right path to better yourselves now and I trust her, especially since my conversations with both you and your mother have only confirmed it. Besides, none of us made an attempt to pick up on our old rivalry, instead, we were nice to each other and as we will see each other for the rest of our lives on Teddy's birthday it would be good for us to stay friendly. Plus, I am seriously considering a teaching position as well, so if it is probable that we'll see each other in Hogwarts for the rest of our lives and additionally even in our free time due to Teddy, I might as well try to make you my friend."

The two boys now looked at each other in silence. Harry was processing what he had just said (he realised he had partly quoted what Hermione had said on the topic, what's more, he had pronounced his own observations that he definitely did not plan to talk to Draco about, at least not yet. He figured it might be good that they would be in the clear about that now though) and Draco seemed to be doing the same.

"You remember, you were the one that originally declined my offer of friendship?", Draco answered and Harry tried to contain his inner groan at that reply.

"Well, you were an arrogant brat that insulted my friend then", he snapped.

"What changed?"

Harry replied offhandedly: "You made some horrible decisions and had to learn to live with the consequences."

"I am still learning to live with them", Draco corrects guardedly.

"Good enough for me", Harry softens his voice scantily, "everybody tries to find their place in the world after the war. Even me."

"Yeah, but not everyone has been fighting on the wrong side."

"As I said, you will learn to live with that. And hopefully someday, this won't be what you, me and everyone else will define you by."

"I'm working on it", Draco smiles tentatively.

"But", he adds, "I still don't like Weasley."

"That", Harry laughs, "is very mutual." He shrugs. "But I don't care if you guys like each other as long as you are not hurting each other. I can still be friends with you both."

"Ok", Draco says quietly.

"Ok, what?"

"Ok to being friends with you."

Harry smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter in two parts so I really hope it's consistent.  
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it.  
I know I could basically stop the fic at this point but there is still at least two chapters coming. Maybe I'll decide to write more :)


	11. Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neville persuades Harry to talk to McGonagall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> University started so I have less time to write and update but the updates are coming and not many anymore :)  
In the meantime, enjoy this chapter <3

The next few weeks felt weird to Harry. He and Neville had always been friends and spent time together but now they had a lot of one on one time. Harry and Draco were now not only sitting next to each other in Potions, with an occasional helpful comment from the latter but were wholly working together. Harry loved this and was glad that the awkward tension between them in their shared lessons had finally been resolved, even though this came with a (probably not that much) unforeseen side effect that made the whole lesson not less awkward but probably even more so: Ron threw them suspicious glances every time they were talking to each other (which was a lot) and Hermione joined him, her glances being more discreet and of a more curious nature than her boyfriend's but still being obvious to anyone who dared look. If anyone was feeling bold, they might even accuse Hermione of becoming a little distracted from the lesson (she'd counter that they had no proof of it as you could barely make out the difference in her Potions).

  
Everyone in the room could not help but notice the inseparable Gryffindor trio barely talking to each other while the former foes vividly chatted and soon got in on peeking at the pair suspiciously.

Harry knew that soon the whole school would know and talk about it and maybe (he didn't even wanna think about how that would turn out) the Daily Prophet might even write an article about it.

Ron was spending a conspicuous amount of time studying with Hermione at the library, meaning they were unable to talk about anything (without pulling Mrs Pince's wrath on them), and Harry easily understood that this was Ron's way of taking time to adjust to the new situation (and being totally not okay with it), while not risking their friendship.

Harry was all-right with it but planned to give his best mate some time and some room. He had known before that Ron would not like it but was just as unwilling to let their friendship suffer because of it. They've been through worse.

This means that Harry is finding himself in Neville's company more often than not. It was getting warmer outside and the two of them had spent an afternoon studying outside in the sun.

"This might seem random now", Neville spoke up, making it sound like a question, "but when you were talking about not wanting to become an auror anymore, you were talking about becoming Defense against the Dark Arts Professor, right?"

Harry stayed silent for a while, thinking. "Well, it's one option I was contemplating."

"So Luna was right."

Harry looked up.

"Well, you see, I did not believe her at first because I was thinking of how vehemently against teaching the DA you were back then but she was like No no, he knows now that he is a good teacher. And Defense against the Dark Arts has always been his favourite subject. If he doesn't want to be an auror, there is no other occupation than Defense against the Dark Arts teacher that he could want to have. And well, it's Luna and sometimes she's awfully sure of things that are kind of outlandish and sometimes even downright false, so I didn't believe her directly. But you two always somehow got each other in some weird way I never got behind (don't get me wrong, I love her but you two get each other in a different way than we do), so I thought I might as well ask you about it."

Harry laughed, "Yeah, she was right apparently."

"Should have been obvious that if anyone besides you thought about the possibility of you not starting auror training, it would be Luna." The two of them laughed.

After a short time for thought, Neville added: "Rumour has it, Slughorn offered the Potions teacher position to Draco Malfoy. Do you know about that?"

"I'm sitting next to him in Potions, so I heard when they talked about it."

"And?"

"Why are you so curious about it?", Harry looked at his friend questioningly.

"Am I not allowed to be? He's our classmate and now apparently some kind of friend of you."

Harry nodded. "As far as I know, Draco has made no enquiry about it yet, but he's definitely thinking about it. I think it'd be good for him."

"He's made no enquiry about it?", Neville asked, and more urgently, "did you make an enquiry about the Defense Against the Dark Arts position?"

"No", Harry deflected.

"Oh my, Harry, you have to ask McGonagall about it", Neville urged, "you have to. She will say yes, I know it."

Harry groaned.

"Let's do it right now!"

"What? No!" Harry protested, but Neville was already putting both of their things away and as soon as he was finished, started to pull the other boy along with him. As much as Harry tried to hold Neville back, they did arrive in front of the corridor that leads to the headmistress' office just a few minutes later.

"Why do I have to do it now?", Harry asks in a hushed voice, "I could just as well could it any other time."

"Yes", Neville answered smugly and continued to drag his friend along, "we're doing it exactly because you could do it any other time, so you might as well do it now."

He stopped and turned to Harry. "You don't have to apply for the position yet, just ask about it. If it's free; If she'd consider you if you applied for it. Just ask. Otherwise, you'll just wait until Ron drags you into becoming an auror with him." He gives him a pointed look.

"Ok", Harry whispered.

They turned back on their way, just to walk right into the blond Slytherin they were talking about earlier.

"Oh", Draco said, when he saw the two Gryffindor's approaching, "do you have an appointment with her? I can come back later then."

Harry sighed. "We certainly do not have an appointment. I don't want to be here at all, so feel free to go in, we'll just get back to what we are supposed to be doing now." As the sentence progressed, he turned towards the boy standing beside him, giving him a meaningful look.

"Are you here because of Slughorn asking you to take over Potions?" Neville cheerfully ignored Harry, whom this caused to slip a deep sigh.

Draco eyes wandered between the two friends warily but finally decided to nod.

"I would not blame her if she did not want to consider me for the job, but then I'll have to search for something else, so I'd rather know sooner than later."

Harry tried to shoot him an encouraging smile, which proved rather difficult when Neville apparently decided that the should accompany him.

When Harry tried to hold him back, Neville said: "You're both here for the same thing, so why not? And I'm coming with you, so you don't decide to chicken out."

At that, Draco looked at Harry questioningly, who only groaned but followed them inside nonetheless.

Professor McGonagall looked up from her desk when she heard steps on the stairs and soon after lifted her eyebrows when she saw this unusual combination of people.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you three in my office? And together at that?"

"We came separately", Harry felt the need to explain, "we're here for separate, although related, affairs."

"And what would those be?", she eyed them curiously.

"Professor Slughorn mentioned that he'd like to retire again", Draco started.

"Ah, yes, he's very adamant about it. I'm trying to find him a replacement but we're currently running this school mostly on stand-ins already. How is this your concern, Mr Malfoy?"

"He mentioned he'd consider me a suitable replacement if you were willing to hire me. So I am here to ask if you would even consider my application considering my personal history."

"And Mr Potter and Mr Longbottom also want to apply for Potions?"

"Not for Potions, ma'am", Harry replied. Neville nudged him to keep talking. "Defense against the Dark Arts, if there was a position vacant."

McGonagall smiled amusedly. "There are more positions vacant than I can fill. And I told you once before that you've always had very high marks in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Additionally, you already have experience in teaching it, I recall. I do not know why you would worry about your application. And what about Mr Longbottom?"

"Oh", Neville exhaled surprised, not having expected to be spoken to, "I am only here for moral support."  
McGonagall nodded again.

"Coming back to you, Mr Malfoy." The headmistress looked at the Slytherin pensively, "I remember from your godfather's accounts that you always had very good marks in his Potion's lessons and I understand from Slughorn's interest that they have not significantly declined in his classes either." She made a small pause and Harry and Neville were following the interaction with much interest. Neville with more curiosity, Harry with more concern. "Your personal history might be a reason against it." She motioned with her quill between Draco and Harry. "And I heard that you two started spending time together, have even witnessed so myself", Harry thought back to when she could have done so but came up empty-handed, "some of the younger students even believe you to be friends now and you two coming up here together seems to confirm it. So although I do not condone all of Mr Potter's actions, especially here in school, I am very well aware that you must have undergone some fundamental change for him to spend time with you which takes that worry away." She breathed in. "Meaning, I will consider your application. But I will keep a close eye on you until the end of the school year, and should I employ you, I will continue to do so."

Draco visibly relaxes.

"Something else?", the woman asks and the three boys shake their head in response.

"Thank you very much", Draco sais when they are leaving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I planned this to be two chapters but instead I wrote it all so short that it barely makes one but it's coming along and there's not so much more I have to write anymore, just a few small points to wrap up. Thank you anyway for reading this and to those four(?) people for following along. I'm doing my best and I hope you enjoy it :)


	12. Small Steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ron and Harry have a talk before going to the burrow over Easter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might get back to revisiting the rest of the chapters (don't worry tho, I won't change any of the content if I do so)  
Also no more long waiting. After this there's only one more chapter coming, wrapping it all up.
> 
> Have fun with this one!

As Harry was sure of, Ron came around until Easter Break. The boys in the Gryffindor dorm were all currently finishing packing their bags, so they could go down to eat before taking the train home, when Ron approached his best friend.

  
"Harry?", he asked cautiously, causing Harry to turn around with a wide smile.

"What's up?"

"Before we go home, I wanted to say sorry for avoiding you", he looked down at his feet, "I was not aware I was doing it until Hermione pointed it out and, as always, she's right, I might have done that unconsciously. I know you won't replace me with Malfoy but you talking about being friends with him felt like a small betrayal."

"He's not the same as he was before the war, you can see that", Harry reminded him, "and as I said, I don't expect you to be friends with him. Just be okay with me trying to befriend him. And you'll always be my best mate. No one will change that."

"Yeah, I get that now. But it's hard for me to understand that after everything he put us through", Ron hesitated, "but I guess you can connect to him in a way that I can't. In a way that you haven't talked to me or Hermione."

Harry looked at Ron like a deer caught in headlights. After a moment he said slowly: "I didn't wanna burden you with it and I just ran into Draco accidentally while he was suffering similarly and ... it just developed naturally from then on."

"Yeah", Ron replied ruefully, "I get that now. I guess Hermione and I have also let you alone with it quite a bit. And oh man, is she gonna be mad that I had that conversation without her but I know she is just as sorry as I am that we got caught up in our relationship and did not realize that you were doing poorly... so poorly that you turned to Malfoy of all people." Harry snorted at that last comment.

After a moment of hesitance, Ron added, "It's PTSD, right? Hermione's parents had mentioned it as something a lot of muggle war survivors have and Hermione and she asked her parents to look it up a little more now."

Harry was stunned. "Umm... I don't know. I don't know what it. It's just", he sighed, "I suddenly start to panic and I remember some of the dead people, people who's death was my fault. And as much as I know it wasn't me who killed them and try to concentrate on literally anything else, my brain just continues supplying the memories, the pictures of Colin, of Fred, of ...", his voice broke as the first tear rolled down his cheek, "... Remus. And I can't get them out of my head. I try, I try so hard, and I try to tell myself that it is not my fault, that Voldemort killed them, that Bellatrix did, that the death eaters did, but I can't fight my own brain. And I spiral downwards until I don't even know what started it all."

Ron nods. "And Malfoy gets that?"

Harry shrugged. "In his own way. Yes. I cannot tell you how exactly, I can't ..."

"Betray his trust?", Ron supplied.

"Yeaah", Harry grinned apologetically.

"Dude, this is so weird", Ron laughed, then going solemn, "but if he helped you when none of us could, I won't hold that against him. It's fine with me. And... I mean, I got around to liking Luna, I might even like Malfoy one day. That day is not today tho."

Harry wrapped his best friend in a hug before they stepped out of their dorm to follow Dean, Seamus and Neville to the Great Hall.

The look on Mrs Weasley's face was pure confusion when Harry waved Draco goodbye while passing him on the platform. Narcissa was giving him a small smile as well but hid it rather well to anyone besides him.

"Let's go", Harry prompted his friends when they all got their luggage and both Ron's and Hermione's parents followed their adult kids outside.

It was weird not to have Hermione at the burrow but George and Percy did their best to make up for it although not consciously. George was a lot livelier than he had been before and he and Percy talked about the new products that they wanted to start selling in the twins' shop soon. Percy was still no Fred and could in no way compete with his brother as a partner, but it seemed like he had found or made his own place in his brothers' shop and focusing on the more technical stuff. Reading up on the charms George wanted to use on the products and thereby reducing the quantity of self-experiments they had to endure (judging by the look on Mrs Weasley's face, she appreciated that a lot, as Mr Weasley liked to phrase it "she's grateful for Percy keeping George out of mortal peril").  
Bill and Fleur visited them shortly with Victoire but the rest of the time Ron, Ginny and Harry fell victim to their free time which now, after what they had endured during the last years, although relaxing, seemed boring. Soon the two boys looked at their school work with honest welcome and continued revising for their NEWTs. Ginny was less than happy about it and so started annoying her other brothers (or being annoyed by them, Harry couldn't quite differentiate).

Still, Harry found the time to visit Teddy and Andromeda once.

He had nearly expected Narcissa to be there and sure enough, both her and Draco were already present when he got there. He greeted them a lot friendlier than he had before (even though he had not been unfriendly in any kind beforehand) which put a startled but content smile on Andromeda's face.

Still, he was here to see Teddy, so he left the three of them to drink tea to concentrate on the toddler crawling on the floor.

"Oh, how big you have become", he exclaimed and earned a suspicious glare by the small creature. He should have known his godson would not recognize him, Harry scolded himself before sitting down on the floor to build a relationship with the boy again.

"We have such a nice weather today", Narcissa remarked after some time, "maybe the two of them could take Teddy into the garden. Don't you think the fresh air will do him quite well?"

"A very good idea", her sister agreed and so Draco and Harry found themselves in the small backyard of Andromeda's house with a small child between them.

"What do we do with him outside?", Harry asked, "The only thing we'll be able to agree to is Quidditch and I am very sure that Teddy is still too young for that."

Draco shrugged. "I'm getting him a toy broom for his birthday anyway."

Harry laughed which caused Draco to smirk: "Oh, come on. If I didn't buy it this year, you'd definitely bought it next year. With you as his godfather and me as his cousin, he's probably gonna grow up with so much Quidditch that he's gonna hate it by the time he reaches puberty."

Harry laughs again. "Good point. I do hope we'll make him love Quidditch instead."

"Well", Draco agreed, "that'd be the ideal."

They sat down to watch Teddy who started crawling through and uncoordinatedly plucking blades of grass off the ground while laughing.

Draco rolled his sleeves up before leaning back. Harry's gaze shifted to him for a few moments, his left forearm especially, until he forced himself to look back at the toddler.

"Is now a good time to ask about the tattoo?"

Draco glanced at where his mother and aunt were sitting. "How do you know about the tattoo?"

"You told me yourself that you tried covering it up."

"I never mentioned a tattoo though."

"There might be a rumour about it at school", Harry admitted while he shifted to position himself better as to look at Teddy and Draco at the same time, "the Slytherin's told somebody you covered your Dark Mark with a muggle tattoo and... well, you know Hogwarts, that means most of the school knows. But I was able to put two and two together."

Draco sighed, sitting up cross-legged and placing his left arm cautiously on his legs, the Dark Mark open to see. The whole inside of his arms was covered in different colours: green, pink, yellow. Purple petals surrounded by red leaves. Small daisies next to big tulips. Flowers seemingly exploding on his arm and in the centre of the still life the ever-moving snake of the Dark Mark.  
Harry now understood what Draco meant by saying he _tried_ to cover it up. The Dark Mark, although subtle, was still very much visible to a trained eye. Not much of the black lines itself but the movement still painted a perfect picture of the snake it once used to portray.

Draco gently stroked over the edges of the pink flowers. "They are right. It's a muggle tattoo." His eyes wandered to find Harry's. "I wanted to contrast it as much as possible. Some childish part of me believed that if I covered it up with something opposite to what it stands for, it might cancel out. I was wrong. But I thought a muggle tattoo would be fitting. Paired with flowers. Flowers bloom in the spring. Where life begins. I thought this was as much contrast to _death_ eater I could get with it still being aesthetically pleasing." Harry nodded.

"The yellow ones", Draco slowly shoved his arm in the other boy's direction, "are daffodils. Narcissus." His cheeks coloured. "It might be a little cheesy but it's for my mother.  
Harry's throat tightened. He could understand it. His mother's love had protected him for about sixteen years of his life. Lilies would have been his choice.

"And this", Draco put his finger on a green plant, "is called Draconia albicerata. They are for me. So I don't forget myself."

Harry felt like he had only been nodding to what Draco was saying and felt the need to reply something himself. He cleared his throat to make the lump go away. "Does the symbolism help you?"  
Draco stared at his arm as if to decide what to answer before setting himself in a comfortable position again. "They certainly could not make it any worse."

Harry laughed and they silently watched Teddy for a few seconds.

"How are you?", Harry decided to speak up again.

Draco looked at him contemplatively. "Is this meant in a small talk way or in a general, all-encompassing way?"

Harry turned to return the look. "The latter."

"I think it will get better", Draco admitted, "definitely not his year, probably not next year, maybe not even the year after that, but I feel like I will get there. I already don't feel the need to cry every time I think about what I did and what I could have done differently. No, what I should have done differently. Still, three in four times I feel like crying but at least one in four times, I can cope. I feel like I am slowly starting to detach from the person I was to become the person I want to be. And it will take time but ... I think I'll manage that. Somehow."

"What about you?", he added.

"I talked to Ron about my panic attacks. Yeah, I know. But he brought it up himself. I think I'm getting better too. Now that I'm staying at the Weasley's and George is joking again and Mrs Weasley is no longer crying all the time, I'm feeling better. I guess when I see the people around me healing, I have less I feel guilty for. Fewer reminders of it, at least. That way it's easier to snap out of it. Which is still not easy but... small steps, I guess."

Draco nodded. "Small steps."


	13. Another summer - Reprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry writes the NEWTs and spends an exciting summer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion is finally here!  
Thanks to those people who read it even tho I wasn't consistently updating.
> 
> And thanks to [ Zeldantis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xpaperheartso/pseuds/xpaperheartso) for giving me the motivation to finally finish this. It was surprisingly effective.

When the end of the school year, and with it the NEWTs, approached, Harry thought it was probably the best he has ever been prepared for an exam in his time at Hogwarts.

  
Draco had started joining the Gryffindor's in the library a few weeks beforehand and while Ron and him still did not like each other, Harry was happy to see them starting to warm up to each other. And Hermione, although not forgiving Draco for his actions of the past has very much taken a liking to having somebody in their group that values knowledge as much as herself, making her open to conversating with him even outside of revisions. At first, that happened very much to the dislike of Ron but as he started to open up to Draco himself, he also opened up to the idea of Hermione having intellectual conversations with the Slytherin without feeling threatened.

All of them passed their NEWTs when the time came, even better than any of them could have hoped to pass while the war was still going on. Both Luna and Ginny eyed their friends jealously when coming out of their examination rooms.

The summer, Harry spent again at the Weasley's while Hermione went home to her parents' muggle home, for the first time without having to worry about what happened in the Wizarding World while she was away. She promised to visit them though, before starting her training at the ministry that Kingsley Shacklebolt talked her into.

Harry spent much time at Andromeda's again, although not as much as the year before, considering he had both Ron and Ginny at the burrow now, as Ron was home and George and Percy had moved out of their parents' house again.

"Have you told your mom about the possibility of you taking over Potions yet?", Harry asked Draco one of the times they met at Andromeda's.

"I'm still waiting for the results", the other boy admitted, "I want to be sure before I tell her. If I'm not able to, I might take my aunt up on her idea. See the world a little."

Harry nodded, although doubting that it would come to that. He did not notice McGonagall being dissatisfied with him. As he did not have definite proof of it, he decided to keep silent anyway.

After their results came and Hermione finally showed up at the burrow, to all of the younger inhabitants' joy, Ginny started to talk about organizing a party. Luna and her had apparently been talking about it for a while now, they had even gotten Neville's affirmative answer of his presence were they deciding to go through with it.

The trio shared a look when Ginny brought it up at the dinner table, realizing another part of a normal youth that the war had taken from them but being open to trying it out, making the next two weeks being spent with party planning, all of them very glad they had started so soon, as most of the shops selling party supplies had still not reopened after the war. Ginny and Ron ended up ordering at their brothers', making them vow not to add too many joke articles ("That is all we sell!", George had exclaimed indignantly, before being reminded that they had always sold more than that and hence unwillingly agreeing to it).

Molly and Arthur had agreed to let them use their garden for the party, and their children, in their excitement, proceeded to invite their whole acquaintance, figuring they could all need a little fun, the older ones especially before starting their jobs and consequently _real adult life_ a short time after.

On a whim, Harry invited Draco, who surprisingly accepted, and although making Ron sigh initially, he only acknowledged it with a shrug and a muttered "Why not?".

The rest of their friends were not as used to spending time with Draco as Ron and Hermione were and therefore a little wary of him. Unsurprisingly, they did not warm up to him during the evening but at least tried not to be overtly hostile, some even talking to him neutrally, asking him about his NEWT results and plans for the future, which both Harry and Draco counted as a success, sharing a smile over it.

"Hermione and I are thinking about getting an apartment together", Ron announced a few nights later, him and Harry lying in their beds in Ron's room.

"That's cool", Harry replied.

"I'll stay at the burrow until you start to work but as you'll be spending most of your time in Hogwarts anyway, we figured why not take an apartment together. Move out of our parents' homes."

Harry turned to smile at his best friend. "I'm happy for you two. Expect me to visit though."

Ron grinned back "Both of us are expecting letters too. And feel free to tell me how often you have to give my sister detention."

Harry laughed about that.

"It will be weird to teach the people I know", Harry added more solemnly and silently.

"Nah", Ron assured him. "Remember the DA was also people you knew who were around your age? You got that. We learned a lot and so will them."

"Thanks, mate." A few minutes later both their breaths have evened out, the two of them in peaceful slumber.

Ron kept his promise of staying with Harry at the burrow while Harry's still there, even when he and Neville started their auror training. Ron being away during the days meant Harry spent most of his days at Andromeda's again and Draco, knowing of it, went to keep him company even on the days his mother was elsewhere employed. Their friendship started to settle into something calm. Something that did not depend on both of them being in pain and suffering. Draco even got so far as to ask how Ron and Hermione were doing and how they liked their jobs.

A week before the beginning of the new school year, Andromeda approached Harry with what seemed to be a serious topic. She had waited for a moment when neither Narcissa nor Draco were present to say: "I'm getting old."

Harry looked up surprisedly.

She continued: "I know I still have a lot of time to live left but I'm getting older and I don't think I'll have the energy to care for a small child at my age for much longer. It might be too sudden to ask you to take Teddy with you when you go to Hogwarts, especially since it's a new job. But I'd like to ask you to think about taking care of him when you're settled in at Hogwarts and at your job. I did some research and there's some muggle nursery in the nearest muggle village that he would be old enough to attend next year."

Harry nodded slowly. "I – ", he answered dumbstruck, his mind quickly wandering to Sirius, wanting to take him in but never getting the opportunity to. He might be young. A lot younger than Sirius was when he left Askaban, but about the same age Sirius was when Harry's parents were murdered and Harry can only think of one thing to say. "Yes."

Andromeda visibly exhaled.

"I'll gladly take him in and take care of him but I need to make a few preparations before I can", he explained, "I have a house"

"Sirius', right? My cousin's?"

"Yeah, I have his house but it's not really liveable yet", he continued, "let me take care of that first and ask in the nursery you mentioned and then yes."

"You don't have to rush", Andromeda assured him, "I just wanted to breach this subject _before_ I really get too old to take care of my grandchild. You are young, you will be able to keep up with him better when he starts to walk surely. I am but an old woman. And while you and my nephew are at Hogwarts there is no young person near with the energy he has."

Harry looked at his godson, his hair changing from yellow to red when he felt the look on him. "It might be hard to hide his being a metamorphmagus to the muggles", Harry remarked then.

"We'll find a solution", Andromeda clapped him on the shoulder. Harry smiled up at her and then crouched down to cuddle the evergrowing little child.

Then, the day came for Harry to part for Hogwarts again. Although he no longer was a student, Molly and Arthur insisted on seeing him off at the train station together with their daughter. Luna joined them at the platform, making Harry decide to sit with the two of them for the ride, instead of looking for other teachers. They had shared a compartment with Remus all these years ago after all.

Having stored their suitcases, the three of them sat down, talking about their expectations of the new school year and the changes in Hogwarts' teaching staff.

"It will be weird to sit at the teacher table", Harry remarked, causing Ginny to laugh.

"It will be even weirder to see you sit there."

"I'm looking forward to you teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts though", Luna chimed in, "it will be like the DA all over again."

"Only that he will have to mark you", Draco stated after sliding the door open, "May I sit with you?"

"Sure", Luna waved him in.

"Last time our lives depended on if we listened to him. I'll be glad that it's just our grades now", Ginny sighed.

Harry laughed. "If only all of the students would see it that way."

Draco shuffled a little in his seat before announcing: "I don't have any expectations to the students I'll teach. I just want them not to resent me as their teacher too much for this one." He raised his left arm and shook it to make them look at his dark mark. Luna and Ginny stared at him in shock, not yet having seen his attempt at a cover-up and even less being used to the young man talking openly about that dark part of his past.

"Most of them were taught by Snape. Treat them better then he did, and I think you'll be ok."

"Oh, wow, the bar is lower than I expected." The other three laughed.

"It will help if they see you taking care of your cousin from time to time", Ginny recommended over the brim of the book she just picked up.

"Teddy?", Draco asked, "how would they see me taking care of him?"

Ginny and Harry shared a meaningful look.

"Well", Harry started nonchalantly, "considering he will live with me from next year on, that depends entirely on you."

Draco looked at the young man next to him with wide eyes.

"Will you need help?", he asked when he shook his surprise off.

"Probably", Harry stated dryly, before laughing, the other three joining in.

"I'll gladly help if you need it", Draco assured his new friend, "he's also family for me, after all."

"I'd help too", Luna added, Ginny nodding in agreement.

"Thank you", Harry said, "but it's your NEWT year", he looked at his girl friends, "you'll have enough to do already."

Luna nodded but Ginny pushed her lower lip forward to mimick pouting, which turned into a grin when Harry, seeing through her, stuck out his tongue.

"Children", Draco sneered fondly.

Harry looked out the window and looked forward to being in Hogwarts again. Teaching defence against the dark arts, something that the adults in his life had failed to do.

He thought of Ron, Neville and Hermione, currently in training to take over what the government that had failed them.

Then he looked over to Draco, who's going back to fill the position of his late godfather and break the cycle of muggle hatred in his family.

Harry smiled to himself. He was sure Ginny and Luna would follow suit. And then they were all working on breaking the cycle, each in different ways, in different places. Working on being better adults than the one before them. Better aurors, better politicians, better teachers. He could not help but be proud of them.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Draco smiling too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you liked this, I'd like to hear from you! Feel free to leave a comment or contact me on [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/captain--sif).  
Or if you watch 9-1-1, check out my [9-1-1 fics](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainSif/works?fandom_id=20963328) or the [Secret Santa exchange](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1579816) I organized.
> 
> Don't hesitate to also tell me what you didn't like :)


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